Thunder vs Warriors AKA RUSS VS KD Preview
The time has come. Russell Westbrook is about to face off against Kevin Durant for the first time since KD slithered out of Oklahoma City and fled to the team that had just beat him.
It really is too bad the NBA scheduled Russ vs KD I on the second night of a back-to back for the Thunder, not to mention the game being in Oakland. It should definitely be in Oklahoma City, but oh well, life is not fair.
Even though the Thunder have a superior record (4-0), they are the clear underdogs in the matchup. and Vegas agrees: Golden State is favored by -10.5 points heading into the slugfest. For the Thunder to come out with the victory, their number one priority has to be to play stifling defense.
Obviously the Thunder need to execute offense effectively, but locking down Golden State's potentially devastating aerial attack should be of utmost focus. The Warriors are a little vulnerable defensively as of now; they have a whole in the middle of the defense the size of the Grand Canyon, and their perimeter defenders have been lazy. The Thunder should do just fine on offense as long as Russ gets more contributions from him teammates.
The Warriors are going to be a tough out on offense, but the Thunder have the elasticity to be able to fluidly switch screens and hold up with Curry, Durant and Co. Westbrook is perfectly capable of guarding Steph, and even Durant in some cases. He plays physically (duh) and that can sometimes scare Curry off into being more aggressive.
Shooting guard Victor Oladipo is going to have to be a difference maker for the Thunder to come out of this game 5-0. He is going to be matched up against the quickest trigger in the west this side of Anthony Morrow in Klay Thompson. Even though Thompson has shot a barf-inducing 3/28 from three-point-range so far, he still imposes fear in opposing defenses, and cannot be left open. Not only does Oladipo have to navigate the forrest of picks that Thompson swerves around, he also has to be the number 2 man on offense. Russ cannot do it all by himself (he almost can), so he is going to need someone to just take the ball and get some buckets every once in a while. Even though Thompson will be running him wild, Oladipo needs to be that guy
Small forward Andre Roberson, besides his crisp and sneaky basket cuts on offense and occasional three-pointer, is a minus on offense. His value comes on defense, where he will be tasked with guarding KD for the majority of the game. Roberson is an excellent defender to begin with, and he surely must know many of Durant's moves after playing him in practice for three years.
The Domantas Sabonis-Draymond Green matchup may look like a disaster for the Thunder on the surface, but it is not as bad as it sounds. Sabonis had a similar matchup against another premiere power forward in Blake Griffin just last night, and it was expected Griffin was going to demolish him. On the contrary, Sabonis held his own, keeping Griffin at only 14 points, as well as knocking down open treys and consistently making the right pass. This face-off appears to be a huge mis-match for the warriors, but do not count the wily rookie out of this one; he has some skills and spunk.
Definitely the Thunder's most obvious advantage is the center matchup, where Steven Adams faces off against Zaza Pachulia. Adams is nimble and strong and will feast on the glass against the slow-footed Pachulia. If the Warriors decide to stick Adams into the pick and roll, he can adeptly switch onto anyone, holding his own and oftentimes coming out with the stop. Adams has the clear advantage here, and he needs to live up to it.
The Thunder have a lot of juice off their bench, what with the rebound-munching Enes Kanter, quick-witted Joffrey Lauvergne, athletic freak Jerami Grant, sharpshooter Anthony Morrow and floor general Semaj Christion. The Warriors should have the better bench; Andre Iguadala is conceivably superior than anyone the Thunder can bring in, but he has been surprisingly lackluster so far. Maybe it is his advancing age (33 years), but Iggy has not provided the BURST we are all accustomed to. He has been the opposite of a spark plug, playing sluggish and a step behind.
I just want to watch a great game, and I have a sneaking suspicion that we will get it. Also, if there truly is a God, Russell Westbrook will posterize Kevin Durant to win the game.
It really is too bad the NBA scheduled Russ vs KD I on the second night of a back-to back for the Thunder, not to mention the game being in Oakland. It should definitely be in Oklahoma City, but oh well, life is not fair.
Even though the Thunder have a superior record (4-0), they are the clear underdogs in the matchup. and Vegas agrees: Golden State is favored by -10.5 points heading into the slugfest. For the Thunder to come out with the victory, their number one priority has to be to play stifling defense.
Obviously the Thunder need to execute offense effectively, but locking down Golden State's potentially devastating aerial attack should be of utmost focus. The Warriors are a little vulnerable defensively as of now; they have a whole in the middle of the defense the size of the Grand Canyon, and their perimeter defenders have been lazy. The Thunder should do just fine on offense as long as Russ gets more contributions from him teammates.
The Warriors are going to be a tough out on offense, but the Thunder have the elasticity to be able to fluidly switch screens and hold up with Curry, Durant and Co. Westbrook is perfectly capable of guarding Steph, and even Durant in some cases. He plays physically (duh) and that can sometimes scare Curry off into being more aggressive.
Shooting guard Victor Oladipo is going to have to be a difference maker for the Thunder to come out of this game 5-0. He is going to be matched up against the quickest trigger in the west this side of Anthony Morrow in Klay Thompson. Even though Thompson has shot a barf-inducing 3/28 from three-point-range so far, he still imposes fear in opposing defenses, and cannot be left open. Not only does Oladipo have to navigate the forrest of picks that Thompson swerves around, he also has to be the number 2 man on offense. Russ cannot do it all by himself (he almost can), so he is going to need someone to just take the ball and get some buckets every once in a while. Even though Thompson will be running him wild, Oladipo needs to be that guy
Small forward Andre Roberson, besides his crisp and sneaky basket cuts on offense and occasional three-pointer, is a minus on offense. His value comes on defense, where he will be tasked with guarding KD for the majority of the game. Roberson is an excellent defender to begin with, and he surely must know many of Durant's moves after playing him in practice for three years.
The Domantas Sabonis-Draymond Green matchup may look like a disaster for the Thunder on the surface, but it is not as bad as it sounds. Sabonis had a similar matchup against another premiere power forward in Blake Griffin just last night, and it was expected Griffin was going to demolish him. On the contrary, Sabonis held his own, keeping Griffin at only 14 points, as well as knocking down open treys and consistently making the right pass. This face-off appears to be a huge mis-match for the warriors, but do not count the wily rookie out of this one; he has some skills and spunk.
Definitely the Thunder's most obvious advantage is the center matchup, where Steven Adams faces off against Zaza Pachulia. Adams is nimble and strong and will feast on the glass against the slow-footed Pachulia. If the Warriors decide to stick Adams into the pick and roll, he can adeptly switch onto anyone, holding his own and oftentimes coming out with the stop. Adams has the clear advantage here, and he needs to live up to it.
The Thunder have a lot of juice off their bench, what with the rebound-munching Enes Kanter, quick-witted Joffrey Lauvergne, athletic freak Jerami Grant, sharpshooter Anthony Morrow and floor general Semaj Christion. The Warriors should have the better bench; Andre Iguadala is conceivably superior than anyone the Thunder can bring in, but he has been surprisingly lackluster so far. Maybe it is his advancing age (33 years), but Iggy has not provided the BURST we are all accustomed to. He has been the opposite of a spark plug, playing sluggish and a step behind.
I just want to watch a great game, and I have a sneaking suspicion that we will get it. Also, if there truly is a God, Russell Westbrook will posterize Kevin Durant to win the game.
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